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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. march — the month
  3. mug — to rob
  4. stem — to come from
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. bore — to drill
  7. mug — a cup
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. ground — a position
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. mine — for digging
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. mug — a face
  16. march — the month
  17. plane — a tool
  18. ground — the earth
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. march — music
  22. bore — to tire
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. pound — a weight

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com